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Hello I have a burmese python and I work at a business that builds church pews out of oak. I am planning on designing and buildin a cage for my burmese. I am asking for any suggestions on cage design and heating as well as lighting and the finish I should put on the cage since it would be made out of wood. The deminsions on the cage would be 8'L x 3'H x 30"W. If anyone would care to give me some guidence on building my cage and where to get some supplies for the heating please feel free to leave me a message...Thank You...Disturbed_Devil

I would not use solid oak for the carcass of the cage. Oak is a great wood but notorious for expansion and contraction. Not good for a reptile enclosure which will likely experience temperature differentials inside and outside.

Instead I would use oak laminated plywood for the carcass of the cage and use solid oak for the face frame. You might spend some time trying to find a plywood supplier that can match the species and cut of the oak you have access to.

For a finish you want to pay particular attention to the floor and first several inches of the cage walls. That is where most of the damage from urates, water spills, etc. will occur. Recently on this forum there has been a shift towards using a plastic floor of some sort. Vinyl film, linoleum, expanded PVC sign board, fiberglass reinforced panel are all recommended. Of those linoleum and other vinyl floors are often the easiest to find. Since many of them come in attractive patterns and colors people have even used them to line the walls of the cage, often giving a very nice look combined with a real-wood exterior.

If you want a stained/clear coated wood look on the inside I would still use plastic flooring of some sort on the bottom and first several inches of the cage walls. The rest can be clear coated with a water-based finish. Oil-based polyurethanes have very long offgass times and are not recommended for use on the interiors of cabinets. One poster on this forum has cages he built over a year ago still releasing toxic smelling fumes. Needless to say they sit empty.
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Current snakes:

0.0.1 Gonyosoma oxycephala - Java locale (green)

1.2 Gonyosoma oxycephala - Jave local (green)

2.2 Gonyosoma janseni - Seleyar locale (all black)

1.2 Gonyosoma janseni - Celebes locale (Black & Tan)

There are also plywoods that come prefinished with a UV cure epoxy coating on one or both sides. If you did use plastic on the floor and first several inches of the cage walls I suspect this would be more than durable enough since water and urates should never come in touch with it.

The one downfall to it is that scratches or other damage are not easy to repair. For that reason alone I would not go with the expoxy coating on the exterior since that is where the cage will receive accidental damage.

Pre-finished plywoods are available from both Columbia and Nova.
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Current snakes:

0.0.1 Gonyosoma oxycephala - Java locale (green)

1.2 Gonyosoma oxycephala - Jave local (green)

2.2 Gonyosoma janseni - Seleyar locale (all black)

1.2 Gonyosoma janseni - Celebes locale (Black & Tan)

100% agreed with Chris, he is da man around this forum!!

One other option for interior (although a bit pricey) is to laminate formica to the interior surfaces. I have done this and that stuff will take a beating. It's around $40 - $50 per sheet though.

LOL Disturbed_Devil builds church pews.....covering your bases?

>>Hello I have a burmese python and I work at a business that builds church pews out of oak. I am planning on designing and buildin a cage for my burmese. I am asking for any suggestions on cage design and heating as well as lighting and the finish I should put on the cage since it would be made out of wood. The deminsions on the cage would be 8'L x 3'H x 30"W. If anyone would care to give me some guidence on building my cage and where to get some supplies for the heating please feel free to leave me a message...Thank You...Disturbed_Devil
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Thanks,

Dave Colling

www.rainbows-r-us-reptiles.com

0.1 Wife (WC)
0.2 kids (CBB, selectively bred from good stock)

LOL, to many snakes to list, last count:
11.24 BRB
10.16 BCI
And those are only the breeders

lots.lots.lots feeder mice and rats

For covering the floor and walls they make vinyl flooring in various wood-grain patterns that look really nice and fairly cheap. This is what I'm gonna use for the cage I'm gonna build in the thread above this one.

[Quote] LOL Disturbed_Devil builds church pews.....covering your bases? [Unquote]

Talk about job security! LOL!!!

HH
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It is said that 1 out of every 4 people are mentally unbalanced. Think of your 3 closest friends, if they're normal, then it's you.

I've said this before and I will say it again. I recommend building two 5' cages and bolting them together vs making one 8' cage. In the end it will be easier to move and larger.
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Jeremy

"I am become death, the destroyer of worlds" July 16, 1945 Robert Oppenheimer

1.1 Double Het "Sharp" Snow RTB's
1.1 Hypomelenistic RTB's
0.2 Pastel Hypo RTB's
2.0 Double Het Stripe Albino RTB's
0.1 Suriname RTB
0.1 Anerthrystic RTB
0.0.11 Red Bearded Dragons
1.1 Rhinoceros Iguana's
1.0 Green Iguana
1.0 Ball Python
1.1 Cream Golden Retrieviers
1.0 Pomeriaian
0.2 Catus Terribilis
0.1 Spouse
0.0.1 Youth -coming soon-